Iron DM 2023!

Humble Hero · #1 Feb 20th, 2022, 09:44 PM

"All the greatest men are maniacs.
They are possessed by a mania which drives them forward towards their goal.
The great scientists, the philosophers, the religious leaders - all maniacs.
What else but a blind singleness of purpose could have given focus to their genius,
would have kept them in the groove of purpose.

Mania ... is as priceless as genius."

MI6 HEADQUARTERS

The time has come. The newest recruits of the most recent intake of MI6 rookies has been approved for active duty. You are among that number, as a group of seven stand in an elevator. You each know one another, you trained together, passed the MI6 training camp that lasted a grueling six months. In that time, each of you has developed a measure of trust, but in the intelligence game who can really be fully trustworthy?

Each of you has dressed appropriately for the first day. Each of you has been given your credential identification, it's very official now, though per regulations no weapons are permitted for rookies on the main floor of the MI6 headquarters building. Ironically, each of you is a weapon, even without a gun.

The elevator is immaculate, spotless, made of metal and fogged glass. The small space is filled with a mixture of anticipation, excitement, dread, uncertainty and everything in between - but no matter what you feel, one thing you know:

You are now a spy; and it is time to do your duty, for Queen and country.

The stark metallic doors open, which reveals a floor composed of offices with large glass panes that separate each. You know from prior preparation documents on the building - located in London, along the bank of the River Thames - that each office is sound proof and can distort the glass with the press of a button. Along the multiple hallways between offices, you see guards in crisp business suits that wander throughout the space; they appear casual, but you can see their eyes constantly moving and the ear pieces they share.

Ahead, a woman in a neat grey business skirt approaches. She has dark skin, dark eyes, and her curled hair is short. She holds a clipboard, however you notice that it doesn't hold paper so much as a screen that she uses with quick, deft finger strokes.

"Good morning, so glad you've arrived," The woman smiles. "I am Miss Moneypenny. We've spoken before, after your graduation from training camp. If you could each come with me, I will take you to the appropriate office."

Without waiting, Moneypenny turns and walks along the hallway, between several glass-contained offices...

M OFFICE

Each room looks essentially alike, but within short order, the agent has you standing before a particular one:

"Please head inside, take a seat. Or stand. Your choice, really." Moneypenny motioned toward the closest doorway, into the office proper. "Take a few moments to take it all in, M will be along shortly to give you a full briefing... you know what they say, the spy world doesn't wait for anybody."

If the shock of being assigned a mission on your first day hits you, the realization that Moneypenny's last words are true helps. Perhaps. Either way, it seems each of you has walked into your first operation as a rookie, and you had a number of minutes to do as you would within the office...

"M won't be long. Congratulations, agents. And good luck."

Moneypenny turns and walks from the office, as she uses the electronic clipboard and ticks several items from an agenda. She disappears around a corner, seen briefly through several panes of glass as she moves on to other business. Your awareness of her is disrupted, as one of the floor guards steps into your sight line, and you catch the alert eyes on you. But, for now in M's office, you are alone with your fellow rookies...

OOC NOTE
You are now in M's office, waiting for her arrival. You each have time to establish your characters - how they feel, what they're wearing, their demeanor and even some conversation, and Remember, you have all lived together in boot camp for 6 monthshow well you know one another. If you feel the want to post multiple times, feel free.

You are also free to perform any Difficulty factor: 5perception checks to look at details, or otherwise (converge your PER and Difficulty 5 on your multi-table, then roll 1d100 - lower is better).

This thread will cover both your first mission briefing and your pre-mission Q Branch interaction.

My next reply will be on 25th Feb, to progress the story with M - however, I will provide any results for rolls between now and then (if needed).

If you have questions, feel free to use general discussion or your private threads. Also, see the spoiler for your stat block, that should be placed beneath each post:

Welcome to 007: Dying Is Not Enough - let's have some fun!

Barrigan · #2 Feb 21st, 2022, 01:21 AM

Percie Huntingdon

Percie filed into the austere office with her fellow agents and took a seat in front of M's desk. Her legs crossed at the ankle beneath her chair, hands folded neatly in her lap and her back straight in her seat would have made her deportment teacher proud but the brief focus on such things served to calm her nerves a little. M was one of the least physically imposing people you could meet and yet she was a legend in the world of espionage whose sheer presence was such that a single pointed question could reduce the most hardened of Double-0 agents to stammering apologies. She was everything Percie aspired to be and yet now that her training was complete and she was a full-fledged agent ready to receive her first briefing from M herself, the heights of that goal had never seemed so far away. Percie

Dice PER 8, DF 5 = Success Chance 40:

1d100

55

cast an eye over the office and its surroundings, partly because observation had been drilled into the rookie agents until it was second nature, but mostly for her own interest. She looked for anything out of the ordinary or anything that might give her a clue as to M's personality, likes and dislikes.

"Here we are at last. How exciting!" Percie flashed a brilliant smile at the other rookie agents whom she had come to know over the past 6 months. Trust was slow to build, especially in this business, but Percie was not yet so jaded that she could resist the bonds which naturally developed between companions who experienced hardship together. Although her past profession was military intelligence and not a front line soldier everyone had to go through basic training. MI6's basic training though, had been on a whole other level and even though each of the group was intelligent, self-reliant and resourceful, Percie sometimes wondered if they all would have made it through had they not had each other to lean on from time to time.

She still had much to learn about the spying game and about her fellow agents but she was glad she had good people around her and she wasn't being thrown into the field for the first time all alone.
"Do you think we'll be on our own for this mission or running support for a Double-0?" she wondered aloud, looking to the others for thoughts.

Acathala · #3 Feb 21st, 2022, 06:57 AM

Tom had elected to wear a maroon hoodie which had the crest of a football club(Heart of Midlothian) on it. Black trousers with combat boots completed the fashion statement. The only remarkable thing about his appearence is is his height and weight, tall and muscular.
He nods to Persephone as she spoke to him. Tom never uses the shortened version of her name, as it made her sound like a boy, and she was definitely a woman. Those keen powers of observation would serve him well. "I think you're safe. I don't see any pomegranate seeds around." Tom said in a dead pan way, which made it hard to tell when/if he was joking. He thinks she might have been one of the army intelligence officer people.
During the training, Tom had been professional if distant from his fellow agents. They were there to do a job. He's reasonably certain they won't get each other killed. Training had been as thorough as Tom expected it to be. Mildly pleased to be the best shot of the group.
Tom sits down and somehow he's smuggled a soft drink into the building. He sips on the radioactive orange coloured Irn Bru, Scotland's other national drink. Upon hearing Persephone speak again. "I don't think it matters. I'd rather wait on the briefing, than idly speculate."

Amarga · #4 Feb 21st, 2022, 11:29 AM

Sullivan Conray

The tall scholar was dressed properly for the occasion, as always. A pair of grey slacks with smart shoes, collar shirt, tie and jacket. He nodded to Miss. Moneypenny, "Thank you Miss Monneypenny, History is much the same as the spy world, as far as waiting goes." he smiled softly and took a seat, choosing to relax before things got started.
Sullivan cocked his head and adjusted his glasses as he thought about Percie's question, it had been entertaining to engage in conversations on language with her during camp, and he enjoyed her optimism. "One can't really say, Miss Huntingdon, unless someone here knows something the rest of us don't."

He practically grins as Tom mentions pomegranate seeds, "You know Drummond, I've been waiting a good six months to make that joke. But you should know it does no good for a mortal to tease a god, as the old tales go."
Sullivan was generally friendly with his other recruits, and used their last names as a matter of politness. He had been glad to spend time training with a group of intelligent people, and found their perspectives fascinating. Drummond particularly got the historian in Sullivan interested, and he wondered if the tall, blonde bearded Scot had some old nordic blood in his family from some past excursion into the northern end of England.

OneDarkness · #5 Feb 21st, 2022, 02:46 PM

A meeting with M

Frankie smiled and gave a nod as Moneypenny invited them to make themselves comfortable, which is just not possible when one is waiting in the office of the head of MI6 for your first assignment. He wasn't sure if he was nervous or excited or some combination of the two but either way he did his best to not to make it too obvious, the others seemed to be holding up well under the circumstances and were likely just as excited as he was he suspected. He wasn't surprised that Percie was the first to break the silence, she had always had a sort of calm about her, and she had had some intelligence training before he had heard so likely came with the territory. "Given its our first mission its probably not going to be anything too heart pounding, but fingers crossed its at least interesting."

He took a few moments to wander around the this side of the desk part of the office, see what

Dice PER check diff 5 - success 60%:

d100sl60

9

✔

memorabilia or items of interest M might have out, as Frankie had always found you can tell a lot about people by what they show you or they want to look at. "Either way it will be nice to just get out and do something."

RossN · #6 Feb 21st, 2022, 10:29 PM

Dr. Siobhan 'Jane' Kelly

Jane wore a smart navy dress and heels; the dress and heels were characteristic enough for the fashionista rookie agent but the colouring was perhaps more staid and the cut more conservative than the others might have remembered and she wore simple stud earrings rather than the extravagant concoctions she'd been known to wear. Jane's usually bubbly, slightly ditzy demeanour was unusually subdued - clearly she was anxious about making a good first impression and trying to come across as 'serious'.

Naturally her blue eyes had widened at the sight of the casually dressed Tom and she was already kicking herself for her choices in front of the mirror this morning...

Jane smiled gratefully at Miss Moneypenny, smoothed down her conservative dress as she sat down and looked around before turning to her fellow rookies.

"I still can't believe this is real," Jane said, smiling at the others. Her pleasant voice, lightly Irish accented buzzed with excitement. "You're not the only excited one Percie! I just hope you haven't jinxed us and our first mission isn't something really mundane like sorting paperclips or refilling the coffee pot!"

gavins38 · #7 Feb 22nd, 2022, 06:40 AM

Nathan Roberts

Nathan lets the other rookies lead the way into M's office. They're the more prominent personalities than himself and if anyone needs to be the 'face' of their group it certainly isn't going to be him. MI6 basic training has given him a boost to his self-confidence, but at the end of the day he speaks best when his fingers are touching the smooth plastic of a keyboard.

The layout of M's office doesn't permit anyone to adopt a defensive position; several chairs are lined up in front of the impressively over-sized desk that dominates the room, which are presumably intended for the new rookies. So Nathan takes a seat next to Jane, noting that - like himself - she is desperately trying to maintain a mask of professionalism that goes beyond her normal behaviour. Not that Nathan has ever been intimidated by authority figures; in his previous life he wouldn't have thought twice about retaliating against a wealthy businessman or a powerful politician, if it was beneficial to his latest hack. However, he was now back on the 'straight and narrow' again and M was the pinnacle of his redemption. He could easily have ended up in prison - could still, if he didn't keep it together - all at the whim of the Chief of MI6.

So for now he would sit still, stay quiet - unless directly spoken to - and try not to put his foot in it on his first day and an official agent. While the other rookies discuss potential mission scenarios, Nathan plays absent-mindedly with the cords of his ever-present black hoodie; the hood itself currently hanging lazily down his back, rather than locked in position over his head - practically obscuring his face - as he often wore it when out in public or when hunched over a computer screen and focussing on his next job.

It was in these rare moments of vulnerability that it could be seen that Nathan was actually a fairly attractive young man. His tussle of dark brown hair was kept neat but messy at the same time - partly a stylist choice and partly just the way it naturally fell. His dark blue eyes could be piercing but at times could also be a gentle sea to get lost in - if he ever allowed a person to get close enough to see them. His previous line of work hadn't really been conducive to relationships; allowing himself to get too close to another person just opened up a potential opportunity to attack him, and he had made too many enemies to allow that risk. Of course a change of job had brought about a change of personality and Nathan had found himself revealing more of himself to his fellow rookies over the last six months, and even growing fond of them and their quirks.

His understanding of the sciences - although not on the same level - had opened up many an evening of discussion with Jane; developing his own knowledge while forming a bond of friendship with the good doctor. And his expertise in computing and mechanical engineering had given him an opening to get better acquainted with Frankie too - a move which had surprised as much as it had pleased him. Unlike Nathan, Frankie was quite the sportsman, but with his own casual interest in mountaineering Nathan had found the man to be quite agreeable as a fellow agent, and friend.

Humble Hero · #8 Feb 22nd, 2022, 06:01 PM

GM Check Update

Those that remain or failed a checkpassively aware, you notice little about the office beyond that it is neat, orderly, with some paperwork filed on a wire holder beyond the desk - behind M's chair, on her side of the room. You do note the lack of any personalized items; no photographs, no collectible desk items, nothing to denote much beyond this being M's desk other than the engraved name plague with M.

For all intents and purposes, this office looks much like most of the others - though, perhaps somehow, it's even more sterile and minimalist...

One thought might be: Impersonal.

OneDarkness · #9 Feb 22nd, 2022, 06:25 PM

A meeting with M

Interesting maybe not a coffee run after all. Frankie was disappointed there wasn't more to M's office honestly but when one works in intelligence it certainly doesn't pay to give away anything you don't have to he guesses. Glancing about he catches sight of M even if just briefly a couple of offices over before Ms. Moneypenny notices him watching and the glass fogs and cuts off all further casual observation of them. "Looks like something isn't going as planned, M is a couple rooms over with Our MI6 TrainerColonel Harding, Ms. Moneypenny and a few others and they looked for lack of a better word perplexed about something. The Colonel was in a suit and clean shaven, that's a new look for him, well either way this certainly is getting more interesting."

Barrigan · #10 Feb 22nd, 2022, 07:21 PM

Percie Huntingdon

Percie gave Tom and Sullivan a wry grin at the mention of pomegranate seeds.
"Lucky for me then. I'm quite allergic you know," she remarked, her tone giving nothing away. They were right about the mission though, none of them had any information as yet so there wasn't much point in speculating.

She laughed lightly at Jane's mock concern over jinxing their mission.
"If we're told to sort paperclips I think it'll be hazing the newbies more than anything else. Do watch out though, I've already had one grinning agent try to convince me that fetching his coffee would be good training." She rolled her eyes theatrically. "He said it would help me learn how to blend in."

Nathan was quiet, which wasn't unusual for him. It had taken some time but Percie had come to realise the young man wasn't being rude or antisocial, he was simply reserved and only joined a conversation when he had something to add. That he didn't often speak and mostly kept his face shadowed in his hood gave Nathan an air of mystique and meant that when he did say something people paid attention.

Percie's observation of the office yielded nothing at all about M or their mission. The decor was minimalist and functional at best. Not even a novelty ceramic bulldog to add a bit of personality. If Percie didn't know better she'd wonder if this was M's real office at all. In a civilian business the boss' office was the boss' office but this was the world of espionage and it wouldn't surprise her to learn that M's real office was in a bunker in the basement to shield it from surveillance and this was a glass-walled front she only used when doing paperwork to keep up appearances.

Fortunately, Frankie's keen eyes had spotted what she had missed. Percie turned at his word but missed the glimpse of M, Miss Moneypenny and others he had reported. The mention of Colonel Harding was interesting though. What was the training officer doing here?
"Well spotted!" she complimented the wheelman with a smile. "Perplexed you say? That means there's something they don't know, which isn't a good look in the intelligence game." She paused for thought momentarily, but having nothing more to go on she dropped the serious matter and turned to idle banter.
"Would you say clean shaven in a suit makes him look more like that dwarf from The Hobbit, or less?"

Acathala · #11 Feb 22nd, 2022, 09:05 PM

"Depending on the person, humour can be hit or myth." Tom said this time dead panning a pun, to the academic, the road not taken for him. It seemed to matter not, they had arrived at the same destination. He could have added that Hades was, as the children said today, the most chill of all the Greek pantheon, and would have likely been amused. Tom does not, lapsing into silence as he sipped his drink.
Then Siobhan walked in. Out of all the others, Tom was the most concerned about her. Whilst her knack for empathy was great, Tom worried it might make her feel too much for people. That could get you killed. He's been extra distant with her, in case she's the kind of doctor to want people to talk about their feelings.
He doesn't have to much to say about Frankie. Except he's being useful.
Tall, grimdark and handsome enters the room. Both of them left the other alone. Which suited Tom fine.
Persephone spoke again and he answers her initial question. "I think it's possible they're listening to us right now, and wondering how long it's going to take us to realise this isn"t her real office. Even if they're not, you should always assume someone is listening in spy central." Tom pauses, then adds impishly. "Book or film, and which dwarf? Several of them as I recall."

Humble Hero · #12 Feb 26th, 2022, 12:04 AM

M OFFICE

As the rookie team waited and shared in personal thoughts and observations, even some small talk to pass the time, activity continued outside of M's office. From across the way, several offices over - as Frankie had mentioned to the others - glass panes were un-fogged and returned to normal transparency, revealing M, Ms. Moneypenny and

Colonel Graham Harding among others. The head of MI6 remained in conversation with the taller Colonel, as they walked from the office and shared some final words. Harding pointed to some files held by M, specifying some areas on a page, before the latter nodded and closed the file.

GM PromptThose that choose to, can elect to perform a Perception check - difficulty factor 3 - to determine if they can read lips and glean what might be discussed.

Results (based on quality rating) will be immediately shared in your private thread/s, for rapidity of information awareness and potential inclusion in your next post (before M arrives).

Both M and Harding stopped walking, the older woman smirked, then the pair parted ways - with Harding leaving the area, and disappearing from view. Those watching would note Harding glanced in the group's direction, and even nodded with an expression of familiarity, before rounding a corner...

At that time, the suited guards circulated and passed the office where the rookies remained. One of the guards glanced in the direction of the new agents, her eyes assessing with a quick gaze, before she turned back to the hallway and continued on.

Meanwhile, Ms. Moneypenny had moved to stand beside M. Both were engaged in conversation as the pair walked toward the office that the rookies occupied. It seemed the secretary-agent was providing some last minute updates, as she spoke and walked alongside the department head. The older woman, nodded and flipped through several file folders held in her hands, before finding the right one and opening it to glance through briefly.

It occurs to those watching that M preferred the old school method of paper.

Both M and Ms. Moneypenny part ways, and the older woman rounds the corner of the office exterior and approaches the door to enter. She is dressed in a neat black suit, complete with suit pants tailored for comfort, and white shirt sans tie. Her grey-white hair is cropped short, styled, and she wears some basic jewelry items - a small gold watch, a beaded necklace and a silver-banded wedding ring.

"So you are my new recruits, then? Good morning," M said in her crisp British accent, as she stepped through the doorway and cast a steel-eyed gaze across each of you. There was the distinct feeling that in that quick moment she had assessed you, learning more about you, from years of honed observation skills. "I appreciate your promptness in arrival. Please make yourselves comfortable, if you haven't, and we will begin."

M rounded the desk. Once behind it, she took a singular manila folder from the pile in her hands, placed the others on the shelving behind her, then turned to take her comfortable chair. Once seated, she cleared her throat and began to flip open the briefing folder - which had been marked top secret, eyes only on the frontage - and scanned the information presented on the pages.

"It seems your first day is jumping right into the deep end," M said after a moment, as she squinted and looked to her right. She reached out to a portion on the desk and swiped her hand, which activated a small HUD on the glossy surface. "But, nothing to be done about it. That's just our business. One of you close the door, please, and let's begin..."

Around the office, the glass fogs over and becomes impossible to see through. Once the door is closed, M presses a few more buttons on the desk keyboard, before the entire side wall to her right - your left - transforms into a giant HUD display. It has a range of information panels, including some global reports and statistics, economic trends and even keyword searches that pop up every so often with alerts.

However, M quickly dismisses those, and brings up a wide view photograph of a location...

"This is Monaco. As some might be aware, it is a principality on the Mediterranean coast near the border to Italy. The city state forms an enclave within France, with the official language being French, however in recent decades English has become more prominent and tourists find little trouble navigating the city. Of note, it is the smallest sovereign state in the world apart from the Vatican... why is this important?" M looked around, though she quickly answered her own question. "This means Monaco can act in its own self interest, in every respect, as any country might. This includes controlling legalities and import-export laws, among other things."

With a glance to the rookies, M raised an eyebrow.

"This is why the city has become a centralized location for less-than-legal activity, and has been cropping up more often on our radar. Unfortunately, this same control of its own independence also means that Monaco has a thriving tourism trade, which makes the city popular globally - many appreciate the currency exchange rate, which is generous, and the lavish casino and real estate it offers.

"And this means our agency often has to walk the line where both legal and illegal activity meets, in Monaco. This can get messy, as you can imagine."

M regarded the screen, then continued as the screen changed:

"This brings us to your mission..."

"Your first operation is considered an observe and protect mission. Your group will be sent to Monaco, where you will spend your time observing a guest at the upcoming International Scientific Conference on Economic and Social Development convention, hosted in the center of the city proper. The convention will have guests of every commercial and government sector, with an entirely booked out private function hall of the Monte Carlo Casino being used to host the event.

"The convention will last four days, starting this coming Friday through til Monday next week."

She cleared her throat and pointed to the Chancellor in particular with a finger.

"The man you see on the screen should be familiar to you all. He is the Second Lord of the Treasury, Chancellor Ruvi Suresh, for our Queen's government. For reasons not disclosed to you, he has been invited to attend the convention as a honorary guest, and has been appointed an appropriate personal entourage of bodyguards and security for the occasion."

The head of MI6 raised her eyebrows as she looked to the rookies. Clearly there was more to explain about the situation, and M did so, her voice lowering...

"However, as Chancellor Suresh has some personal concerns, there has been a request for support from MI6. We will be sending your team of agents to Monaco, to remain in positions for emergency intervention should danger or threat present itself." M said, before she continued. "You will be arriving exactly one day prior to the Chancellor, and he has personally requested independent observation and surveillance devices outside of his own security team's be present."

M paused, making sure everyone was keeping up.

"This gives you the opportunity to infiltrate the fourth floor of the Hotel de Paris Monte-Carlo, where the Chancellor is staying in penthouse two, to place any listening devices or bugs. You can also use this time to access any local or private camera feeds, learn about hotel personnel, service routines and scout additional overwatch positions outside the hotel and inside the casino. However, assume the Chancellor's people will be thorough... so be discrete and equally thorough."

The screen shifted, as M pressed buttons on her keyboard. The images changed from the mission-specific hotel and Chancellor to the hotel blueprints and floor layouts:

M continued:

"It is important that our involvement be as unobtrusive as possible, so you will all be tasked with observation until circumstances demand otherwise. That is to say, you will be required to arrive in Monaco, check-in to the Hotel de Paris Monte-Carlo and prepare for mid-to-long range tailing mission, while avoiding notice by the Chancellor's security team and any other individuals of question. Which brings us to..."

The screen went blank for the moment, as M brought all attention from the rookies to her solely. She waited until all eyes were on her, then continued, hands clasped on the desk before her.

"The following is need to know and must not leave this room, understood? Good. Recently, MI6 has discovered encrypted communications centered on the Conference. There are rumors circulating of an underground terrorist group, the Repenteth, who may - or may not - be planning some course of hostile action against the guests at the Conference, which would include Chancellor Suresh. The Repenteth leader, reported to be an individual by the name of Alistair Malik, is known to be ruthless and considered extremely dangerous... his photograph is on the screen now."

The the side, the HUD on the window changed once again...

"At present, we have other assets working on the 'Malik situation', so remain focused on supporting the Second Lord of the Treasury. Your priority, unless circumstances change, are to maintain overwatch and additional protection of Chancellor Suresh, are we clear?"

M raised her eyebrows. She added:

"However, should you be contacted by MI6 or our Monaco assets make contact, consider your previous overwatch assignment rendered supplanted and your new task will be supporting against the more immediate danger. But I repeat, unless that happens, if it happens, maintain observation and independent protection of the Chancellor.

"That said, if you notice anything suspicious, contact MI6 immediately to update us and our field assets."

Finally, the HUD display turned off, and M sat back in her chair as she turned to look at the rookies. She understood the briefing had been complex and long, but that was the life of an agent, and it was now expected that details were able to be taken in stride. That said, M also understood information could be missed or require expansion, so she offered the opportunity:

"If you have questions, now is the time..."

GM NOTE
Now is the opportunity to ask questions and get any further specifics from M. Feel free to ask as many questions as you want, and I will have M respond either directly after that post, or in a multi-answer summary if several posts are made by players, one after the other. However: I ask is that you let me answer any question/s from your character before asking more follow up questions (in new posts).

Note, there is no formal posting order for this question period. Also, if you don't want to ask questions, feel free to simply post per usual keeping your character's presence noted.

If you would like to make checks on the information provided, please include them in your post or make use of your private comm thread.

For all other queries, general discussion or private threads are available.

Amarga · #13 Feb 26th, 2022, 10:41 PM

Sullivan Conray

Sullivan was about to make a comment on more of Tolkien's work, but stopped as M appeared. He waited for them to finish, then listened intently as she began her briefing. The comment "first day is jumping into the deep end", raised a flag in his mind, but there was "nothing to be done about it after all".

He listened intently, somewhat excited to visit Monaco, a fascinating old city state with a colourful history. But he restrained his enthusiasm and focused on the task at hand. He did have a few questions, "Pardon me, M, I am curious about a couple items. Other than our intial loadouts and our hotel rooms, will there be any other assets or contacts we should be aware of or could rely upon? Or is it strictly the case that they will contact us if need arises?"

Barrigan · #14 Feb 26th, 2022, 11:20 PM

Percie Huntingdon

Percie could only nod absently in response to Tom's comments as her attention was diverted by the sudden appearance of M, Miss Moneypenny and Colonel Harding from their meeting. She couldn't make out much of what was said in the hallway. Perhaps M had another mission for the Colonel as he strode away purposefully after a brief nod of recognition to the team.

The young agent stood respectfully as M entered the room and returned to her seat at the older woman's invitation to make themselves comfortable. She listened intently to the briefing and committed every detail she could to memory. M spoke with the efficiency of long practice, conveying a great deal of information in a very short time and that meant every word was likely to be important. She took in the images of Monaco and the Monte Carlo Casino, recalling her brief trip there on a holiday years ago. It was fortunate that their first assignment was to a place she was not only somewhat familiar with but where she also spoke the native language.

M's description of the group's mission left Percie perplexed. There's that word again, she thought, never a good sign. This was her first mission for MI6 but it was not her first experience of espionage. Military Intelligence happened in a very different context but there was still a great deal of overlap. That was, after all, where the MI in MI6 originally came from. She considered the facts provided and the instructions given, the orders on who they were and weren't allowed to speak to and could only come to one conclusion.

Sullivan's question broke Percie from her reverie and she realised she this was a rare opportunity. Normally, conveying her suspicions would be risky as information security was in short supply but here in M's office in present company was one of the few times Percie felt she could speak freely and so sought to confirm her theory. Her tone was businesslike, each word pefectly enunciated with a hint of an upper class accent.
"Forgive me M, but from what you've said I can only assume the Chancellor's fears for his safety come not despite his personal security but from it." She paused for a heartbeat to gather her thoughts. "If we were to protect him from outside threats we would surely be co-ordinating with his security detail but instead our instructions are to avoid their notice. In other words, they are unaware of our involvement, meaning the Chancellor requested MI6's assistance without the knowledge of his own security team."

She paused again, considering what information she actually needed from the Head of MI6.
"Is that correct? If so, do we know the basis for the Chancellor's fears? And do we have any information on the members of his security team, their backgrounds and so on?" Feeling that she'd said enough for now, Percie lapsed into silence and waited attentively for M's response.

RossN · #15 Feb 27th, 2022, 05:59 AM

Dr. Siobhan 'Jane' Kelly

Jane looked uncharacteristically thoughtful as 'M' entered, clearly thinking through something she had just seen. As with Percie she quickly got to her feet when 'M' entered as a sign of politeness and respect for her boss. Taking her seat once more she took in the presentation.

Jane's blue eyes lit up with excitement as the 'M' calmly laid out the mission they would undergo. Monaco! So glamorous and stylish! And protecting the Chancellor no less! You know for a politician he wasn't half dishy...

Focus Siobhan! You don't want to come across as a lovestruck schoolgirl in front of 'M' of all people!

The blonde agent found herself nodding in agreement with Percie and Sullivan's questions, then asked one of her own: "I understand why we aren't cleared for knowing what Mr. Suresh is there for ma'am, but is there anyone else in the hotel who might have their own official security teams for legitimate reasons? I wouldn't want to trail someone snooping only to find they work for the DGSE!"

Are you confused and wondering what is going on here? Check out this YouTube video to get the scoop.

Explosive Runes #34: EVIL EDITION is out!

Iron DM 2023!